Method of making shoes and apparatus therefor



Feb. 12, 1935. J, CHARTRAND 1,990,581

METHOD OF MAKING SHOES AND APPARATUS THEREFOR Filed Dec. 31, 1931 K i vPatented Feb. 12, 1935 UNITED STATES ,METHOD O MAKliNG SHOES Ar RA s Tldii -T i Joseph E. Chartrand, Boston, Mass, assignor to United ShoeMachinery Corporation, Paterson N. J., a corporation of New JerseyAppligation December 31, 1931, Serial No. 584,148 13 Claims. (01. 12-44This invention relates iiph low shoes a d c to the manufacture ofmprises a novel method ofshoen aking characterized by the step ofsimultaneously bending toward or into the out-turned margin of theupperthose tacks by which the upper has been preliminarily positionedupon the last.

It will be understood. that in the manufacture of stitchdown shoes themargin of" the upper, at

least about the forepart and in the shank, is turned'outwardly from thelast and is secured in that position to the projecting margin of a solewhich is larger in contour than the bottom face of the last. In themanufacture of such shoes, it

i is customary to shape the upper over the last and position it thereonby pulling it at the end of the toe and the opposite sides of thef-orepart,

and then driving tacks through the upper into the last in differentlocations about the forepart at'such. an angle and insuch relation tothe bottom face ofthe last as to permit the margin of the upper toextend-outwardly upon the projecting margin of the sole Withoutinterfering with thetacks. The pulling over tacks are, ac-

cordir ely, so located in shoe that while holding relation to the lastandthe upper closely in the angle between the last and the projectingmargin of the sole they may remain in place until the outturned marginof the upper has been permanently secured in place.

Heretofore, it "has been the practiceto bend the pulling over tackswithout definite system toward the out-turned flange of the margin inorder to permit the seam to be carried over the tacks during theoperation of stitching the margin of the upper to the margin of thesole.

I contemplate, as a novel shoemaking operation,

engaging all or several of the pulling over tacks at separate pointsabout the contour of the shoe andfbending them simultaneously toposition them accurately in locations which will tend to improve thelasting of the upper and facilitate other subsequent operations in theshoemaking I have discovered that it is practical and advantageous tocombine the step of lasting the forepart of the upper with the step ofbending thepulling over tacks into position to facilitate the stitchingoperation.

This not only eliminates thenecessity of separately bending the pullingover. tacks but brings about an improved. degree of accuracy in bendingthe tacks simultaneously toward orinto-the out-turned margin of theupper and in effecting asymmetrical tightening of the upper over thelast.

' .=.h ye hsreini sclgse di e a t ng an t bending step as carried out bythe cooperative action of aswork-supporting plate beneath the sole andwiper plates located above the outturned margin of the upper, the twobeing moved and manipulated as is customer-yin.-performing theoperationof lasting the toeand forep-art of. a stitchdown shoe but serving'al'soin this instance to carry out the additional function of simultaneouslybending the-pulling over tacks andembedding them in the out-turnedflange of the upper. ltwill be apparentthat themethod-of my invention isnot limited to this or to anylpar-ticular type of mechanism but maybecarried out by any instrumentality adapted to act simultaneously onthe pulling over tacks in the manner. above outlined. l l

Considered in another aspect, my invention contemplates novelandimproved apparatus comprisingmeans for supporting a lastlh'ayinglapulled-over upper securedthereto, 'astbyj taoks located about itsforepart, andvviper plateslcooperating' with the support to conform thepulledover upper to the lastand simultaneouslyibnd the tacks, preferablyinto a common plane, the

wiper plates being. provided with non-wetting surfaces having notendencyto stick to the upper and thereby causing the wiper plates toreleasathe upper cleanly, without tendency to displacement. Suchnon-wetting surfaces may be furnished,.for example, by highly polishingthe wipers} Preferably, thewiper plates arelplated to provide thedesired non-wetting surfaces 'Ihus,. the illustrated wiper plates arechrome plated. "Such'an organization is particularly useful in lastingstitchdown shoes having water boxes. or. stiffeners, but it may also beused advantageously in operating upon shoes or other -types. Thefeaturesand advantages of the invention will behest understood andappreciatedfrom the following descriptionof a preferred mannerljn which-it may be carried out with the assistance of the mechanism shown 'intheaccompanying drawing inwhich if r C Fig. 1 is a fragmentary view infront elevation of portions of the pulling-over andtacking.instrumentalities of a pulling-over machine, ashoe being shown insection; V .I Fig. 2'is a View in perspective of the. forepartof astitchdown shoe upon whichithe pulling-over operation has beeneffectedyFig. 3 is a fragmentary view of parts of a. toe forming machine suitablefor the lasting and tack bending'operations, the shoe being shown in(section and the parts of the: machine occupying their initial position;r Q l r Fig. 4 is a similar view showing the parts of the machine in theposition which they occupy at the conclusion of the lasting and tackbending steps; and

Fig. 5 is a view in perspective of a stitchdown shoe and parts of astitching machine, illustrative of the stitching operation.

The step of positioning an upper upon the last and securing it in placeis illustrated herein as being carried out by the operation of apullingover machine of well-known commercial type, the main features ofthe general organization of which are disclosed in Letters Patent of theUnited States No. 1,916,275, granted July 4, 1933, upon the applicationof J. Matheu. Only such parts of the machine, therefore, as it isnecessary to refer to for an understanding of the present invention areshown in the accompanying drawing.

In Figs. 1 and 2 a portion of the last is shown to which the upper 14 ofa stitchdown shoe is conformed and secured in place by side tacks 16 anda toe tack 18 partially driven into a beveled marginal rim 12 whichbounds the bottom of the last.

For positioning the work and supporting the last against the pullapplied to the upper, the machine is provided with a work rest 29 which,in the operation of the machine on a shoe of the character illustrated,directly engages the bottom face of the last. For pulling the upper atthe end of the toe and the opposite sides of the forepart, there areprovided a toe gripper (not shown) and opposite side grippers 30. Whenthe operator presents the work to the machine he positions the margin ofthe upper within the open jaws of the grippers and then starts themachine, whereupon the grippers are operated by power to pull the upperover the last with its margin extending generally vertically orheightwise of the last, the machine coming automatically to a stop withthe upper held under tension. Opportunity is then afforded for suchmanual movements of the grippers as may be necessary to adjust the upperand shape it properly to the last. When the machine is again startedside clamping arms 31 are swung inwardly toward the sides of the shoe toclamp the forepart of the upper against the last and support the lastfor the upper fastening operation, the arms in the machine herein shownbeing provided with pads 32 which engage the upper far enough under theforepart of the last to furnish the requisite support.

In the continued operation of the machine the upper fastening devicesare moved inwardly into position to locate the tacks in the beveled rim12 of the last. The upper fastening devices may comprise a tacker fordriving a single tack at the end of the toe and a pair of tackers fordriving one or two tacks at opposite sides of the forepart. The toe endtacker is carried by a front arm 33, a portion of which only is shown inFig. 1, and this is mounted for swinging movement lengthwise of theshoe. The side tackers are carried respectively by side arms 34 mountedto swing transversely of the shoe. The arms 33 and 34 are swung inwardlyto position the tackers relatively to the shoe and in their swingingmovement they act on fingers 35 on the grippers to cause the grippers toopen and release the upper. After the several arms have been swunginwardly, the tacks are driven through the upper into the last in such arelation to the bottom face of the last that the margin of the upper maybe turned outwardly to lie in substantially parallel relation to theprojecting margin of a sole applied over the bottom of the last. As bestshown in Fig. 1, the tacks enter the beveled rim of the last which formsthe junction of the bottom face of the last and its upper shapingsurface and in order to permit the desired positioning of the margin ofthe upper the tacks are inserted at an angle oblique to the bottom face,extending outwardly and upwardly from the inverted last, as shown inFig. 1.

For driving the side tacks each side arm 34 is provided with aself-adjusting carrier plate 38 having a guideway for a tack driver 37arranged at the required inclination. Each plate 38 is provided with atack holder and an adjustable upper clamping stop 49 and a wiper 48. Ineach plate 38 there is also provided a tack passage 4'7 through which atack may be fed into driving position in advance of the driver 37. Asalready stated, the plates 38 are not fast upon the arms 34 but are somounted as to permit adjusting or conforming movement so that they willassume the proper relative position determined by the last before thetacks are driven. For this purpose each plate is provided with slotsextending laterally and receiving bolts 39 and 40 which serve as guides,the slots being somewhat wider than the diameter of the bolts, so thatthe plates may rock in response to the action of the shoe on the wiper48. A torsion spring 41 acts at all times to urge the plate 38 towardthe last.

Each of the arms 33 and 34 is provided with a reciprocating driver bar36 which carries at its lower end an outwardly-projecting bracket arm 45from which projects a pin 46. Adjacent to each of the bracket arms 45 isdisposed a swinging arm 42 pivoted upon a stud 43 to the side arm 34 andhaving a slot in its free end to receive the pin 46. The swingin arm 42also carries a. pivoted clamping member 44 in which the driver 37 isheld. It will be apparent that when the driver bar 36 is lifted the pin46 will tend to swing the arm 42 upwardly and outwardly, retracting thedriver 37. On the other hand, when the driver bars are forced downwardlythis connecting mechanism operates to impart a driving stroke to thedrivers. Sufiicient lost motion is provided in the clamping member 44 topermit the latter to move in substantial alignment with the driverpassage throughout its range of movement.

Fig. 2 illustrates the forepart of a stitchdown shoe after it has beenoperated upon by the mechanism shown in Fig, 1, and while it is apparent that the tacks 16 and 18 are driven in such relation as to permitthe margin of the upper to be turned outwardly in a substantiallyhorizontal flange, it is also apparent that to carry out this step theheads of the tacks should be bent toward the plane of the last bottom.In accordance with the method of my invention this step may be carriedout advantageously by engaging the tacks between relatively movableplates disposed substantially parallel to the last bottom, as, forexample, the work supporting plate and the wipers of a toe formingmachine such as that disclosed in Letters Patent of the United StatesNo. 1,861,832, granted June 7, 1932, upon the application of W. C.Baxter. In Figs. 3 and 4 certain portions of this machine areillustrated in their operation of carrying out the tack bending step. Inthe particular shoe herein illustrated a sole 20, larger than the lastbottom, is secured in place by tacks with its margin symmetricallyoverlapping the last bottom and in contact with the marginal edge of theupper beneath the tacks igeeogssi 16. The shoe in this c'onditionisplaced uponthe worksupporting plate 52of the toe formingmachine'and aholddown member is brought into engagement with the upper surfaceof theforepart of the shoe.

The machine is provided with cooperating wiper plates 54 disposed at afixed height and arranged initially to engage lightly the sides of theupper above the tacks 16. In Fig. 3 the shoe is illustrated as initiallypositioned in the machine; 7

Having. thus presented the shoe, the plunger 51 carrying the worksupporting plate is elevated to exert a preliminary pressure upon thework located between it and the under face of the wipers 54. The wipersare then forced inwardly, pressing the tacksin a direction to tightenthe upper over-the last and when the wipers have reachedthe inner limitof their movement the work supporting plate; 52. is given further upwardmovement, acting upon the work as the projecting flange of the upper andembedded in the latter. The tendency is to impart a. compound curve tothe projecting portion of the tack first slightly downwardly, where itpasses through the upper, and then upwardly into a planecoinciding withthe surface of the wipers and parallel to the sole. It will be apparentthat by engaging the tacks between flat plates and then closing theplates together with the tacks between them, all the tacks will besimultaneously and accurately positioned and the ensuing steps of theshoemaking process may be carried out with assurance that the tacks willbe found in the definite locations thus determined. In

Fig. 2 the upperis' shown-as being secured by a single toe end tack 18and a pair of side tacks 16- and it will be. apparent that the'numberand location of the tacks may be varied without in any way interferingwith the operations above described. In these steps the margin of theupper has not been permanently secured in place and it is, accordingly,desirable to retain the tacks, or some of them, until the upper'is sosecured as otherwise the upper is likely to slacken over the last.

It is the practiceto provide the toe part of the upper, forward of thetip seam, with a stiffener, rendered pliable by moistening prior to thelasting operation and dried stiif in the finished shoe. These stifienersor boxes are termed water boxes when they are of a. type softened bywater rather than other solvents. In Fig. 2 the part 13 represents sucha stiffener and this may be associated with a lining if desired. Inlasting uppers provided with water boxes, it is desirable that the wipershall leave the upper cleanly and without tendency to stick in itsretracting movement as otherwise the upper is pulled away from the lastand the quality of the lasting imp-aired. When this happens a secondmolding or lasting operation is necessitated. This difficulty is avoidedin accordance with another feature of the present invention by employingwipers provided with non-wetting surfaces. For example, by highlypolishing the wipers or by chrome plating them the tendency to stick tothe upper is substantially eliminated and the upper is left undisturbedwhen the wipers are retracted.

The side tacks 16 may be located'in advance of the tip seam orsufficiently far forward in the shoe to secure the margin of thestiffener 13 when driveninto the last. In thislocation the side tacksare well within the range of operation of the wiper plates 54; i

The step of securing the margin of the upper to the projecting margin ofthe sole 20 by stitching is illustrated in Fig. 5, where the rollerpresser foot 60, needle 62 and needle guide 64 of a stitchdown threadlasting machine are depicited. A machine of this character is fullydisclosed in LettersPatent of the United States No. 1,864,510, grantedJune 21, 1932, upon the application of B. T. Leveque. Such a machine maybe employed to form a seam 19 located in the angle of the out-turnedmargin and extending through the margin of the upper and the sole. Theseam 19 is started at the heel end of the shoe and carried continuouslyaround the contour thereof, passing directly over and across the tackswhich have been bent into position and embedded in the margin of theupper, as already explained. As herein suggested, the toe tack 18 may beremoved before the stitching operation and the seam is shown asextending over the side tacks 16 but, as already explained, the use orretention of additional tacks would require no variation of the process.

Having permanently secured the upper and sole by the seam 19, the tacks16 have no longer any useful function and may be removed and the shoecompleted in the ordinary process of manufacture. Certain of thebenefits and advantages of the novel sequence of steps above outlinedwill be apparent in the improved quality of the lasting exhibited by theshoe and in the facility with which thestitching operation may becarried out upon the shoe presented to the stitching machine.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. The method of making stitchdown shoes,

which consists in securing the upper to the last at opposite sidesthereof by tacks driven in such relation to the'bottom face of the lastas to permit the margin of the upper to extend outwardly upon theprojecting margin of a sole, then tightening the upper about the lastand simultaneously bending the tacks intocontact with the outturnedmargin of the upper, and subsequently stitching said margin over thetacks so bent.

2. The method of making stitchdown shoes, which consists in securing theupper to the last in different locations about the forepart by tacksdriven in such relation to the bottom face of the last as to permit themargin of the upper to extend outwardly upon the projecting margin of asole, then simultaneously bending towards each other the tacks and theout-turned margin of the upper to tighten the upper about the last, andsubsequently stitching the margin to the sole by a seam passing over thetacks so bent.

3. The method of making stitchdown shoes, which consists in securing theupper to the last at different points about the forepart b-y tacksdriven in such relation to the bottom face of the last as to permit themargin of the upper to extend outwardly upon the projecting margin of asole, engaging said tacks, together with the sole and upper margins,between substantially parallel plates and compacting them therebetween,and subsequently stitching the material so compacted over the tacks.

4. The method of making stitchdown shoes, which consists in securing theupper to the last by tacks driven obliquely to the last bottom at theedge thereof, out-turning the margin of the upper beneath the tacks,tightening the upper over the last by simultaneously bending the tacks,and subsequently stitching a sole to the outturned margin of the upperby a seam passing over the tacks so bent.

5. The method of making stitchdown shoes, which consists in securing theupper to the last by tacks driven obliquely to the last bottom at theedge thereof, out-turning the margin of the upper to form a flangedisposed parallel to the last bottom, positioning a sole thereon, andthen improving the condition of the shoe for stitching by simultaneouslyembedding the tacks in the out-turned flange of the upper and tighteningthe upper about the last.

6. The method of making stitchdown shoes, which consists in pulling overand tacking the forepart of the shoe at a plurality of points, lastingthe upper with its margin out-turned and at the same time bending thepulling over tacks into a plane substantially parallel to the shoebottom, and then stitching the out-turned margin of the upper to theprojecting edge of a sole over the tacks so bent.

'7. The method of making stitchdown shoes, which consists in securing anupper to the last by tacks driven at opposite sides of the forepart in adirection oblique to the last bottom, outturning the margin of the upperbeneath the tacks, engaging the upper in a plane above said tacks withWiper plates while the said margin is supported from beneath, lastingthe upper by means of said wipers and simultaneously embedding the tacksin the supported margin, and then stitching a sole to said margin by aseam passing over the embedded tacks.

8. The method of making stitchdown shoes, which consists in securing anupper to the last by tacks driven at opposite sides of the forepart andextending outwardly and obliquely with respect to the last bottom,out-turning the margin of the upper, and then engaging all of the tacks,forcing them in a direction tending to tighten the upper over the lastand at the same time embedding the outer part of each tack in theout-turned margin of the upper.

9. The method of making stitohdown shoes,

which consists in pulling the upper over the last, securing the upper tothe last at points upon opposite sides thereof well in advance of thetip line by tacks driven obliquely into the edge of the last, and thensimultaneously bending the tacks into parallelism with the last bottomand placing the upper under further tension.

10. The method of making stitchdown shoes, which consists in securing tothe last, by means of tacks driven at separate points about theforepart, an upper having a softened water box therein, out-turning themargin of the upper, and then conforming the upper to the last by aWiper plate having a. non-wetting surface and at the same time bendingthe tacks into parallelism with the out-turned flange.

11. In apparatus for operating upon stitchdown shoes having water boxes,means for supporting a last having a pulled-over upper secured theretoby tacks located about its forepart, and wiper plates movable toward andfrom the last and cooperating with said support to conform thepulled-over upper to the last and simultaneously bend the tacks into acommon plane, said wiper plates being chrome-plated upon those surfaceswhich engage the upper, whereby the wiper plates are caused cleanly torelease the upper in their retracting movement.

12. In apparatus for operating upon stitchdown shoes, means forsupporting a last having a pulled-over upper secured thereto by tackslocated about its forepart, and wiper plates movable toward and from alast on the supporting means and co-operating with said support toconform the pulled-over upper to the last and simultaneously bend thetacks into a common plane, said wiper plates having polishedupper-engaging surfaces.

13. In apparatus for operating upon stitchdown shoes having water boxes,means for supporting a last having a pulled-over upper secured theretoby tacks, and wiper plates constructed and arranged upon relativemovement of the last-supporting means and the Wiper plates to conformthe upper to the last and simultaneously bend the tacks and to bedisengaged from the upper, said wiper plates having plated upperengagingsurfaces whereby the wiper plates are caused cleanly to release theupper.

JOSEPH E. CHARTRAND.

